A study shows companies are shifting investments toward video marketing even as they remain skeptical about ROI. Here's why the majority think videos are essential to growth.

Smart marketing decisions come from evidence, not intuition – so how do savvy marketers make a case for uncharted formats they believe will work? In the face of the surging demand for online video, a recent Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and DigitasLBI study shows 45 percent of marketing executives are highly concerned about the return on investment of videos compared with other content formats. It’s the top barrier to investment, followed by price and content quality. Yet video marketing budgets continue to rise.

Biggest obstacles in video marketing

The study shows that companies are reconsidering investments to make room for more online video content. Nearly two-thirds of marketing executives (64 percent) plan to increase their investments in digital videos, even as 45 percent worry about ROI.

Traditional marketers now realize the shift to digital is not optional, subjective or necessary only for brands targeting Millennials and tech lovers. It’s essential for any business that wants to stay relevant.

There’s no denying data indicating audiences spend more time watching videos online than they do offline. Brafton recently reported that Americans watch an average of 5.5 hours of video every day, and 20 percent of that time is dedicated entirely to digital viewing.

When companies create video ads to capture audiences during viewing routines or add streaming content to their websites, they see vast improvements in engagement and even conversions.

The case for video: Other brands’ engagement & conversion success stories

One way marketers can make the case for video is by citing similar brands’ video wins. Case in point: An employee benefit program company works with Brafton’s video team to produce bi-weekly video blogs about the value of human resources technology. The video strategy complements written content to appeal to customers who prefer to watch instead of read.

Over time, it’s become clear that visitors are more engaged with the brand’s message when they watch videos. More importantly, they’re more likely to take an action that’s valuable to the brand. Specifically, people who played the videos:

  • Spend four times longer on the site than average

  • Look at three times as many pages

  • Convert twice as often

Check out the details of this strategy and the results in this success story.

42% of all video marketing spend goes toward original content

To stay on top of the shift toward visual content and capture the benefits companies are investing in custom video content. The study found budgets for original video content are up 5 percent from 2014, and now represent 42 percent of all video spend. 

If your executives are reluctant to pivot, but you’re ready to make a similar shift with your content marketing, it might be valuable to share some information on the current video marketing landscape:

  • Adoption rates are climbing. Multiple studies show anywhere from 64 to 70 percent of marketers are investing more in video this year

  • Video is often cited as the most effective content format

  • YouTube is now the biggest social network, and Facebook sees 4 billion video views daily

Brafton's video marketing resource discusses seven common mistakes and how to avoid them.Here’s a handy eBook with some data and examples of how it works in action

 

 

 

The video trend is here to stay. When used effectively, video content serves a wide range of marketing needs – from short corporate overviews for awareness, to in-depth tutorials that earn trust. Brands that implement clear strategies will be well positioned to achieve ROI goals and find themselves ahead of the curve.

Lauren Kaye is a Marketing Editor at Brafton Inc. She studied creative and technical writing at Virginia Tech before pursuing the digital frontier and finding content marketing was the best place to put her passions to work. Lauren also writes creative short fiction, hikes in New England and appreciates a good book recommendation.